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WAM, Pakistan (AFP) — Thousands of people in mountainous southwest Pakistan on Wednesday bedded down for a freezing night in the open, after a powerful earthquake destroyed their homes and killed at least 170.
The 6.4-magnitude pre-dawn quake flattened mud h Read the rest of this entry »
Shift Toward Democratic Party Continues
WASHINGTON – October 28, 2008 – Democratic candidate Barack Obama’s substantial lead among Arab American voters has almost doubled since September. This was one of the findings of a poll of Arab American voters conducted by Zogby International for the Arab American Institute. Read the rest of this entry »
By Souheila Al-Jadda
John McCain and Barack Obama have very different visions for what America needs over the next four years, and when it comes to foreign policy, the differences are quite stark. On Middle East policy, in particular, many of their positions are diametrically opposed.
Obama wants a phased withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq; McCain wants no timetables. Obama is open to direct diplomacy with such foes as Iran; McCain says preconditions would have to be met.
What do Arabs and Muslims in the Middle East think of the U.S. candidates? Mideast experts and polls, as well as interviews I’ve done through e-mail and in person during a recent trip to Syria, indicate mixed reviews of the two nominees but with an edge for Obama.
One thing is clear: Whoever wins will have a tough task. Not only must he work toward elevating America’s standing in the Middle East, he must also demonstrate to an increasingly frustrated Arab public that his policies will be a real change from the past eight years. Read the rest of this entry »
Skeptics Challenge Assumptions Made
By Michael Abramowitz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, October 29, 2008; A02
Could the polls be wrong?
Sen. John McCain and his allies say that they are. The country, they say, could be headed to a 2008 version of the famous 1948 upset election, with McCain in the role of Harry S. Truman and Sen. Barack Obama as Thomas E. Dewey, lulled into overconfidence by inaccurate polls.
“We believe it is a very close race, and something that is frankly very winnable,” Sarah Simmons, director of strategy for the McCain campaign, said yesterday.
Few analysts outside the McCain campaign appear to share this view. And pollsters this time around will not make the mistake that the Gallup organization made 60 years ago — ending their polling more than a week before the election and missing a last-minute surge in support for Truman. Every day brings dozens of new state and national presidential polls, a trend that is expected to continue up to Election Day. Read the rest of this entry »
Karachi, 28 Oct. (AKI/DAWN) – Citing an announcement posted on the bank’s website, the report said the money was specifically meant to stabilise Pakistan’s troubled economy.
It quoted a finance ministry official as saying that the International Monetary Fund had objected to the programme as, it argued, the World Bank had no authority to approve such a loan.
The report said the World Bank’s unexpected move was likely to hurt the so-called ‘Plan B’ outlined by the prime minister’s adviser, Shaukat Tareen, to prevent Pakistan from descending further into economic funk. Read the rest of this entry »
